The Lost Circus
by ThePrinceRomani
Summary: Michael Emerson has always been drawn to the darker side of life and when he meets a mysterious girl who pulls him even further into the depths, will there be any coming back out? Circus AU. David x Michael.


"The Fool"

It was autumn, time for school to start up again and Michael Emerson was not looking forward to it. The mundane and the rut called "high school" made his stomach twist painfully.

It's not that he hated school, he just hated the annoying underclassmen, the overbearing teachers and the almost insane amounts of homework.

Sitting at the breakfast table with his head just inches away from his untouched bowl of cereal, he groaned ever so slightly. His younger brother, Sam Emerson, on the other hand, stared at his older brother with confusion.

"Mike, are you really that butthurt over school?" he asked.

Michael slowly raised his head, glaring hard at his younger brother.

Sam immediately shut himself up, pulling his lips into a straight line and staying far away from his brother's sour attitude.

"I mean, at least you're a senior. You've only got one more year to go! I've got three…I should be the one complaining." Sam continued, now musing to himself.

Michael sighed, taking a sip of coffee, internally jealous that Sam was only a sophomore. While it was true that Michael was close to being done, senior year was pointless. He had already applied to colleges junior year and taken all his hard classes then. Senior year was not something he was looking forward to.

"Whatever…" he finally responded, Sam pouting further.

"Come on, Mike! Cheer up! It could be a whole lot worse…" Sam urged.

Michael just rolled his eyes and tried to sip on his bitterly cold coffee. He did not even try to pretend to perk up as his mother walked in.

"Now, Michael, make sure you get your parking pass today and be _careful_. I highly doubt the school will appreciate a student on a motorcycle." Lucy Emerson said, darting around the kitchen and getting their lunches packed.

"I know, mom." he responded, tiredly.

With their bags packed and Sam with his helmet on, they headed out into the dim morning light and onto Michael's motorcycle. Sam awkwardly sat on the back, Michael driving.

They headed down the hill of their grandfather's property and through the boardwalk town known affectionately as "The Murder Capital of the World."

Santa Carla was the average beach-goer-youth-filled-punk-ridden town. Plenty of kids called the boardwalk their hang out and the adults respected that.

The Emersons had only recently moved to the town after Lucy divorced her husband and they were forced to move in with their taxidermy-loving grandfather. They quickly got used to the awkwardness over the summer and by the time late August rolled around, they were practically natives.

Some girls giggled and waved at Michael as he rode past on his bike. Michael took in very little notice as he was driving but appreciated the girls nonetheless.

Santa Carla High was home to the Flying Foxes (aka giant bats). The mascot stood out welcoming in the students.

Michael parked and soon the brothers departed. Sam eagerly made his way to the school, grinning in excitement and taking all the club fliers he could find. He hoped to join the baseball team but also hoped that he could be in the jazz band but also be in the comics club! His mind raced with excitement as he dove into the hype.

Michael was much slower to get to the school, looking around at the ugly white and grey walls in the small brick building. The school looked like it had been built in the 1950s and looked about as loved as an old comb. He hated it already.

Clubs were limited but Michael was slightly interested in the mechanics club, since he worked on his bike religiously. There was not a specific motorcycle club but a mechanical club was good enough to him.

Soon (too soon) the bell rang and called all the students to the prison-like classrooms. Michael reluctantly made his way to class, ignoring the curious glances of his peers.

Sam was much more excited for his first class – advanced Chemistry. He had always had a knack for the arts and sciences and as the only advanced placement class, Sam eagerly took it.

He took his assigned seat, which happened to be right beside a boy around his age. The boy had unkempt blondish-brown hair, piercing eyes and he dressed rather unfashionably. Sam knew he was being stared down but he forced himself to keep his gaze on the teacher.

"You look like some sort of newborn." the boy said, his voice deep and raspy and causing Sam to jump.

"A-A newborn?" he asked, shyly looking at him and immediately looking away. The boy's gaze was too intense and too focused on him for Sam to feel comfortable.

The boy dryly chuckled and added: "Like a baby deer."

Class soon began and as role was called, Sam learned that the boy to his side was named Edgar Frog. He found that name to be very strange, but even stranger was when he was assigned to be Edgar Frog's lab partner.

Sam's heart stuck in his throat. Would this be the end of his joyful Chemistry class? Luckily, his lamenting ended as the bell rang and he rushed to his next class.

Michael had a much more uneventful first few classes. There was a cute girl in his English class and she seemed somewhat interested in him but other than that, nothing happened.

That is, until lunch came. The pretty girl from his English class sat across from him at the lunch table, smirking as she sat and sat the tray on the table.

"I don't like this food but it'll have to do. If you like eating garbage, that is." she mused and Michael looked up from his dismal lunch tray and to the pretty girl.

"Yeah?" he said and she just smiled at him gently, sticking out a bengal-encrusted wrist to shake his hand.

"Star." she said simply and Michael cocked an eyebrow.

"You too?" he chuckled and she recoiled her hand, giving him a harsh stare.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she demanded.

"Nothing!" he responded, still finding the whole situation rather funny. "Your parents were hippies too, then? I almost got named 'Moonbeam' or 'Moonchild' or something like that."

Star smiled a little when she picked up where he was going with that. She giggled lightly and shook out her curly, permed hair.

"No, no. Star's a name I chose myself. Because I am a star." she responded, eyes sparkling.

Michael's eyes widened as he stared at the interesting girl. He returned a small smile, only to be interrupted by a certain younger brother.

"Man, Mike, am I relieved to see you!" Sam cheered as she sat beside his older brother, sighing in relief.

Michael shot him a glare which rather clearly spelled out: "Leave." But Sam did not get the memo and started digging into his packed lunch.

Star smiled gently, seemingly unfazed by Sam's boisterous presence.

"I've got a little brother of my own. But he's much younger. Just entered sixth grade." she said, still keeping a gentle smile on her face.

Michael sighed a little and tried his best to hide his irritation but could not seem to shake it. He slowly unpacked his own lunch.

"Star, this is my younger brother, Sam. And Sam, this is Star." he said, breaking the silence that had fallen upon them.

Star smiled lightly at Sam and Sam looked up, some peanut butter dangling off his lips.

"Nice to meet you." Sam responded.

Star returned her gaze to Michael, looking at him a bit more excitedly. There was now a spark in her eyes and she was certainly more than excited about something.

"Ever heard of The Lost Circus?" she asked, cryptically. "I do fortune telling for it!"

Michael and Sam shook their heads, but both seemed very intrigued.

"A circus? You mean with elephants and clowns and stuff?" Sam asked and Star chuckled a little.

"I guess 'circus' is a bit misleading. A freak show would be a better phrase." she said and watched as Sam went pale.

"A freak show!?" he exclaimed, causing heads to turn in his direction.

Star smiled calmly, ignoring the fact that Michael was glaring hard at his younger brother.

"Sounds cool." Michael said, turning his attention back to Star. She just smiled at him, still gentle and happy before reaching into her bag and pulling out two tickets. She handed them to the boys before getting up and walking away, leaving her lunch tray.

Michael and Sam watched her walk off, both speechless. Michael looked down at the intricate ticket written in bold, black letters:

Come One, Come All! Watch a man feel no pain; snakes and bats and wolves become household pets; live hypnotisms; and the dead become art.

Michael was rather confused by the last one but he shrugged it off. He checked the time and date: that Saturday at midnight. Sam gave him a wary look but Michael shrugged it off, too eager to see what this Lost Circus was all about.


End file.
